Mar 14 (AZINS) In a major blow to the Congress party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, senior Congress leader and close Sonia Gandhi aide Tom Vadakkan joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday.

Vadakkan, a close aide of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, was former AICC Secretary. A senior Congress leader from Kerala, he held various positions in the party.

He was inducted into the BJP by Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad at a press conference in Delhi where he slammed his former party for stand on the Pulwama terror attack and India's airstrikes on terror camp in Pakistan.

"When you question the integrity of the Armed Forces, I am deeply hurt and that's precisely the reason why I am here," he said.

He said that the Congress' reaction to Pulwama terror attack, carried out by Pakistan-based JeM terrorists, was sad.

"I left Congress party because when Pakistani terrorists attacked our land, my party's reaction to it was sad, it hurt me deeply. If a political party takes such a position that is against the country then I'm left with no option but to leave the party," he said.

The Congress has been criticised by the BJP for its stance on the air strike against terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Pakistan's Balakot that followed the Pulwama terror attack which killed 40 CRPF personnel.

Vadakkan said he was "hurt" at the situation within the Congress where it was not clear that who was the power centre.

He also said that he believed in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's development narrative.